Saturday, December 29, 2012

It’s a little late for Christmas, but it’s starting to look like a winter wonderland in the garden. We are only expecting a coating to an inch before it changes over to rain, so I thought I’d get outside and capture the moment.

The backyard.

The kitchen garden.

It is peaceful outside this morning. No neighbors, not even any birds chirping. Just the sound of the snow as it gently hits the ground.

The kitchen garden.

The kitchen garden.

Cauliflower and kale in the kitchen garden.

The snow coats the plants, looking like little crystals.

Knockout rose by the shed.

A dried leaf in an azalea next to the shed.

I leave the seed-heads on the purple coneflowers in the winter because the birds love them. They look so cool capped in snow.

The seed-heads of purple coneflowers.

I didn’t trim back the garlic chives because I liked the look of the dried flowers.

Garlic chives.

Snow covering the branches of the wisteria tree, with dangling seed pods.

The wisteria tree.

I planted three Christmas ferns in the fall in the area behind the flower garden that was cleared out. Look how green it is!

Christmas fern.

Dried flowers on the Oakleaf hydrangea and climbing hydrangea.

Oakleaf hydrangea.

Climbing hydrangea.

Herbs by the back porch that are still green.

Lavender.

Sage.

Even though I am not a fan of winter, I can still appreciate how beautiful the snow looks in the garden. Now I feel like curling up in front of the fireplace with a seed catalog and a cup of hot chocolate!

Thursday, December 27, 2012

For many years I didn’t really appreciate the awesomeness that is Longwood Gardens. Maybe that’s because I grew up within driving distance of it and visited many times through the years. Within the past few years I’ve come to appreciate what a truly amazing place it is. It really is massive when you consider the size of the outside space along with the conservatories and the diversity of plants is pretty mind-boggling. It used to bug me how manicured everything is all the time. Maybe now that I know how much work goes into making a garden look like that is why I stand in awe of its absolute perfectness. I can’t even imagine how many hours of hard labor goes into making it what it is on a daily basis.

Longwood Gardens is a great place to visit no matter what time of year. Pierre S. du Pont sure knew what he was doing in creating this stunning place. The Orchid Extravaganza is particularly cool to see each year. But nothing beats the magic of Christmas at Longwood. Nothing. It shines like a sparkling jewel.

Every Christmas the grounds of Longwood are bedazzled in an array of sparkling lights. What better way to get into the holiday spirit? This year, however, it wasn’t such a great night to be exploring outside. It was rainy, windy and cold. This also caused me not to get many photos outside. Plus, I haven’t mastered night photography yet.

The main fountain garden lit for Christmas.

The conservatories are always decked out in gorgeous Christmas displays. This year the theme is stars. As you enter the East Conservatory you are greeted by a beautiful, monochromatic, white tree surrounded by white flowers. The white theme is carried throughout the East Conservatory.

The East Conservatory with a white theme this year.

A white “carpet” in the East Conservatory.

More white decorated trees.

A white standard poinsettia.

Three white-themed trees at the end of the East Conservatory.

The highlight this year was the long table in the sunken Exhibition Hall. The sign explained, “Longwood’s Christmas celebration dates back to December 23, 1921, when our founder Pierre S. du Pont and his wife, Alice, hosted parties for the families of Longwood employees—featuring a spectacularly decorated Christmas tree, gift giving, and holiday music. In tribute to this tradition, we’ve created an elaborate holiday display featuring a 64-foot-long table with a moss runner, preserved roses, vases of winter-flowering begonia (Begonia x hiemalis ‘Barkos’), white moth orchid hybrid (Phalaenopsis), brake fern (Pteris cretica var. abolineata), and silver willow branches.”

The 64-foot-long table in the Exhibition Hall sits on a grass island surrounded by water.

The beautifully arranged table.

White moth orchids.

Decorations on the table.

The gorgeous Christmas tree at the end of the table in Exhibition Hall.

When Carl Sandburg wrote, “The fog comes on little cat feet,” he obviously didn’t know my cat Izzy who comes barreling into a room with leaps and bounds. But maybe he did know Molly, who quietly and gracefully enters the room...but then lets out an angry cry to let you know she’s there and waiting for her breakfast.

The fog did come silently and then moved on this December 9th. The mist hung in the air, giving a sense of mystery and Irish charm to the garden that morning. Little wispy clouds of fog ran through the dried stems of purple coneflowers and along the paths in the kitchen garden.

About Me

I'm a graphic designer who happens to love to garden. This is my garden journal. I am not a gardening expert, just an addict. What I learn comes from books and classes I take. I garden in zone 7A on a property that is less than a quarter of an acre. I've been gardening on this property since 2005.